Lamine Yamal would welcome Julian Alvarez to Barcelona with “open arms” as speculation continues to swirl over the Argentine’s Atletico Madrid future.

The second half of the 2025-26 season saw a lot of questions asked about Alvarez and where he would be next term, with Barcelona, Real Madrid and Arsenal all linked with him.

Los Blancos confirmed they had seen a €150m bid for Alvarez rejected, with his release clause apparently set at €500m.

However, following Argentina’s win over Austria at the World Cup, Alvarez told reporters he thought “the best thing for everyone involved [at Atletico] is for me to leave” and that he wanted to “fulfil my dream”.

Reports suggest that dream is a move to Barcelona, and Yamal would be thrilled with the chance to play alongside the striker.

“I’m not thinking about it too much, but I’d love it, because [Alvarez] is a great player,” Yamal told Cadena SER in an interview broadcast on Tuesday.

“If he comes, we’ll welcome him with open arms… If I were him, I’d do it.

“We’ll be waiting for him if he wants to come. [I say] go for it.”

Since his debut on 19 August 2024, Alvarez has scored more goals (49), had more shots (238) and registered the joint-most assists (17) among Atletico players.

The 26-year-old directly contributed to 29 goals (20 goals, nine assists) in 49 games for Atleti in 2025-26 (not including the Club World Cup), the fifth-most among LaLiga players.

Atletico have responded angrily to Alvarez’s claims, with CEO Miguel Angel Gil Martin insisting the club do not want to sell him, especially to Barcelona.